Chapter 7
"Hogwarts' school year is structured in a similar way to other non-magical schools and colleges in the UK, with a three-term year punctuated by holidays at Christmas and Easter and bounded by the long summer holiday of nine weeks. Though students have the option of staying at Hogwarts for the winter and spring holidays, they can't stay for the summer holiday."
"What happens to those who stay in school?" asked Noah Jones
" Those who choose to stay at the castle during the Christmas holidays do not have lessons and can attend a feast on Christmas Day. Students also, do not have classes the week of Easter, but this is much less enjoyable due to the large amount of work that the teachers assign students at this time in preparation for final exams." he finished smirking at their reactions after enjoying the fact that they wouldn't be having lessons on Easter and then crushing their hopes it was something every older student liked to do to those younger" Other than those breaks and weekends, students do not receive other holidays. However, students third year and above may visit Hogsmeade, the local village, occasionally, and only if they have their parents' permission beforehand if you don't have permission you can't go. There are normally four feasts per year: the start-of-term feast at the beginning of the school year, end-of-term feast at the end of the school year, and feasts at Hallowe'en and Christmas. Through specific houses may have their own celebrations such as a member's birthday or something along those lines."
He looked at everyone wanting to know if they understood what he was saying when everyone nodded, he continued" Classes will proceed normally and the next notable event occurs on the evening of 31 October: the Hallowe'en feast."
Everyone looked excited at that so he continued fast
"Decorations for Halloween include giant pumpkins and flocks of hundreds of bats flying across the halls. The served foods include pumpkin treats, tarts, cakes, and all sorts of magical sweets." every child smiled that looked fantastic" The most exciting thing in that time is the fact that the Quidditch season starts usually in the first weeks of November. In the second week of December, the Deputy Head takes names of those who are staying at Hogwarts over the Christmas holidays. The first term usually ends about a week before Christmas and most of the students and some of the teachers go home by the school train. On the 25th of December, a Christmas Feast is held in the Great Hall for those who chose to stay in the castle during that time. As I said during these holidays, the students may go home. After the 6th of January, the second term begins. The final exams are held in the first week of June and the results come out in the second week. In the evening before the Hogwarts Express goes back to London, the End-of-Term Feast is held. The Hogwarts Express returns to London during the third week of June."
"So, we finish school in the third week of June?" asked one of the children getting a nod as his answer
"Hogwarts' also has a motto which is: "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus". The translation is: Never tickle a sleeping dragon."
"That's a very good piece of advice." said one of the children making James Sirius chuckle and a nod he had always found that moto funny and surprisingly useful seeing that his uncle worked with dragons.
He continued speaking while smiling "Quidditch is the most popular sport at the school no actually the most popular sport in the entire wizarding world with most of the student body turning out to watch each match and everybody is at least a fan of one team and as the school pride, the pride for the house team is just as great. Hogwarts also has a Frog Choir which sings on special occasions. The blazon of the Hogwarts Coat of Arms clockwise from top left: the Gryffindor's lion, the Slytherin's serpent, the Ravenclaw eagle, and the Hufflepuff badger, all circling the letter 'H'. The motto is put in a scroll beneath the shield. The way that the house mascots are arranged makes the center line divide the houses with warm colors and mammal mascots from the houses with cold colors and saurian mascots. There is also an official school song, though this is only sung when the headmaster is in a particularly good mood and deems it appropriate so not that often. There is no standard rhythm for the song. Everyone can sing it how they like, as such my uncles whom prefeed a slow and deep style."
"Well great because I suck at singing," said Violet smiling
"Don't worry everyone does," he said reassuringly " Each house also has its own ghost with those from Ravenclaw and Slytherin being the oldest since the founders' time and also being taught by the founders themselves the other two are slightly younger but they still, are pretty old. They are Nearly Headless Nick of Gryffindor he has a longer name and a title but everyone calls him that…"
"How can you be nearly headless?" asked one of the girls
James Sirius chuckled and said" I will leave that to him, he likes telling the story himself and he would be very upset with me is I tell it. The Hufflepuff ghost is Fat Friar while the Ravenclaw ghost is The Grey Lady and last but not least the Slytherin ghost is The Bloody Baron. Each ghost used to be a student of that particular house when they were alive there are also, other ghosts there but it's nothing to be afraid of they won't hurt you though some may try to bore you to death." he smiled at them and they chuckled they seemed like fun" I am pretty sure you all have figured it out that the house symbols are Lion, Badger, Eagle, Serpent." everyone nodded" You are also going to have to wear your house colors on your cloak while at school but after a few months, it becomes more of a question of pride than anything."
"What are the colors?" asked Charlotte
"Well, they are Deep red and gold for Gryffindor, yellow and black for Hufflepuff, Blue, and bronze for Ravenclaw and Green and silver for Slytherin."
"I don't think I will look good in yellow," said Violet
"No, you are right. I have cousins who are redheads and yellow doesn't suit them at all." he told smiling charmingly at her making her blush and her father, grandfather and brother glared at him which he ignored" I won't tell you the common rooms because that is something only those from the same house should know."
"Tell us more about the Ghosts." said one of the girls excited and the others nodded
"Well, Hogwarts is the most heavily haunted dwelling place in Britain (and this is against stiff competition, as there are more reported ghost sightings/sensing on these damp islands than anywhere else in the world). A castle is a congenial place for ghosts because of the fact the living inhabitants treat their dead friends with tolerance and even affection, no matter how many times they have heard the same old reminiscences." everyone chuckled at that" As I said each of the four Hogwarts houses has its own ghost. Slytherin boasts the Bloody Baron, who is covered in silver bloodstains. He is well known for being extremely unsocial and many students, including those of his own house, is known to be slightly afraid of him. As you may have guessed while alive, he was a hot-tempered man. The least talkative of the house ghosts are: The Grey Lady, who is long-haired and beautiful she doesn't talk to anyone so don't take it the wrong way. Hufflepuff house is haunted by the Fat Friar, who was executed because senior churchmen grew suspicious of his ability to cure the pox merely by poking peasants with a stick, and his ill-advised habit of pulling rabbits out of the communion cup. Though a genial character in general, the Fat Friar still resents the fact that he was never made a cardinal." everyone chuckled at that
"Well at least he knows what he wants." said one of the girls and everyone laughed
James Sirius chuckled too and continued "He also frequently suggests that Peeves should have a second chance."
"Who is Peeves?" asked one of the boys
"Peeves has been the poltergeist at Hogwarts, since c. 993. He is very fond of mischief and chaos, with his favorite students being troublemakers. He is a constant pain to the school and its inhabitants, though I like him very much he has a great sense of humor. The only ones able to control him were the Bloody Baron and the former headmaster Albus Dumbledore."
"What is a poltergeist and why don't they just banish him if he causes so much trouble?" asked one of the mothers
"A poltergeist is an "indestructible spirit of chaos". They haunt one specific location at the time, generally, those inhabited by a large number of adolescents, which a school has a high number of and either "came with the building", or chose to enter it at some point. They occasionally haunt the homes of Muggles. They are among the creatures classed as Non-Human Spiritous Apparitions, and as such, they are amortal. Poltergeists generally do not have a physical form, with one notable exception being Peeves who is considered "the most notorious and troublesome poltergeist in British history."
"I'm sorry amortal?"
"Amortality is the condition of never having died and being unable to die, as an amortal entity was never "alive" to begin with. As amortality refers to entities that have never been alive from the beginning, it is different from "immortality", which means a living being who is unable to die. So, they can't do anything about him because he isn't alive."
"Ah ok."
"As I said Fat Friar insists on giving him a second chance whether or not he deserves it but as I said before Hufflepuffs are very forgiving. Gryffindor house is home to Nearly Headless Nick, who in life was Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington as he likes to remind us all the time when he calls him Nearly Headless but he doesn't mind being called Nick also as I said I will allow him to tell you the story of his head. Another of the more notable Hogwarts ghost is Moaning Myrtle, who haunts an unpopular girls' toilet which no one goes so don't worry and she is just a bit of a pain and slightly annoying nothing too bad. Myrtle was a student at Hogwarts when she died, and she chose to return to school in perpetuity. As the decades have rolled by, Myrtle has made a name for herself as the most miserable ghost in school, usually to be found lurking inside one of the toilets and filling the tiled space with her moans and howls."
"So that's where the name comes from?" asked Nora Scott getting a nod from the older wizard" What about the administration?"
"As for the administration, the highest position of staff at Hogwarts is the Headmaster or Headmistress. There is also a Deputy Headmaster or Headmistress, who will take over responsibilities of the Headmaster should the circumstances demand it. The headmaster or Headmistress is the chief administrator of a School. They make all major decisions regarding the safety and the day-to-day functioning of the school and have the power to override any decision made by any other authoritative facilitator at the school, with the possible exception of the Board of Governors. The Deputy is the person who assists the headmaster in his duties. In the event of a headmaster's incapacitation, the deputy headmaster serves as temporary headmaster until the Board of Governors can elect a new, permanent one through many occasions the Deputy becomes the Headmaster. There is also the Head of House is the title for a Professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is responsible for one of the four Houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin. It is possible for the Head of House to serve concurrently as Deputy Head but not as Headmaster. Like it does right now with the Head of Gryffindor being also Deputy Headmaster but the current Headmistress had to give up her place as Head of the house when she got another job."
"What about the Kitchen?" she stopped and looked at the younger man and asked," It does have a kitchen right?"
He nodded and said" Yes of course it does. A veritable legion of house-elves is enlisted by Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They work the kitchens, preparing feasts for the entire school. They also move trunks and baggage to and from rooms, clean dormitories, and other areas of the castle as well."
"Good." said one of the mothers and the other nodded" Through our children are going to be lazy with someone else doing them jobs."
"Don't worry that's until they are seventeen then they can use magic on their own," he said smirking knowing that wasn't what they meant
"How is a normal day at Hogwarts?"
"The day begins at 7:30 a.m. with breakfast in the Great Hall. During breakfast, the mail arrives in a flurry of hundreds of owls. A bell chime signals the start of the first class at 9 a.m. The bell chimes again in one hour to signal the start of the next class. There are two class periods before lunch (though N.E.W.T. students may have breaks during some of these), scheduled according to your house. Two different houses are in each class the combination is usually Gryffindor-Slytherin and Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw. After lunch, there is another break and two more classes. If there is a heavy snowstorm in between periods, certain lessons that take place outside (such as Herbology) may be canceled, since it would be difficult for students to traverse from the castle to the outside. Dinner is served in the Great Hall toward evening, after which the students are expected to be in their house common rooms for studying and socializing. There is an Astronomy class at night on Wednesday every week (usually midnight). The students must be in bed or in the common rooms by a certain time, after which is called after hours. The times are different for different years (for example, fifth years are allowed to be in the halls until 9:00 p.m.) but if you are caught outside after that time you will be in trouble."
"What about Subjects and teachers?"
"Well, Hogwarts has in its faculty an abundance of wise and talented professors."
'Most of the time' he mumbling under his breath and no one heard him
" Each specializes in a specific subject. Other staff positions include that of a school nurse, caretaker, librarian, and Keeper of the Keys and Grounds of Hogwarts. There are a variety of classes taught at Hogwarts. These include both the core curriculum and the electives, available from third-year forward. Some classes may be dropped in the sixth year so that you can focus more on the classes you need for your chosen carrier. Numerous lessons are described, instructing the students in various branches of magic. Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Potions, Astronomy, History of Magic and Herbology are compulsory subjects for the first five years. At the end of their second year, students are required to add at least two optional subjects to their syllabus for the start of the third year. Five of the choices are Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and Muggle Studies."
"So, with at least two you mean?" asked Violet
"You can choose all of them but you won't be able to attend all of them because some may have the same time."
"Oh ok," said Violet she had wanted to do all of them some of the others were the same
"As I said the Core classes are Astronomy with Professor: Aurora Sinistra, Charms with Professor Filius Flitwick, he has taught me grandfather, father, and I and he is a great teacher, Defense Against the Dark Arts I will keep that teacher a surprise but I will tell you this he has been teaching for two years ago and is twenty-one years old."
"Isn't that a bit young?" asked one of the mothers
"Not particularly and the last teacher resigned after only one year and no one wanted the job plus he is great. The next class is Flying is only for first years because of the fact after that they are allowed them own brooms and can join the House Team the Instructor: Rolanda Hooch, Herbology and the Professor is Neville Longbottom who is also the Head of the Gryffindor House, History of Magic is taught by Professor Cuthbert Binns who has been teaching since the 17th or 18th century and is also a ghost, Muggle Studies taught by one of my dad's friends he was raised by Muggles, the Potions Professor is Horace Slughorn he taught from 1930 until 1981 and then from 1996 to today, The Transfiguration Professor is an old friend of my dad and he has been teaching for years the precious professor became the Headmistress his name is Ernest Macmillan and he is the Head of the Hufflepuff house."
Everyone nodded" What about those electives?"
"The Electives which are from the third year on and are Arithmancy taught by Professor Septima Vector, Care of Magical Creatures whose professor Rubeus Hagrid who is also the groundskeeper, Divination is the subject that studies the future and is taught by Sybil Trelawney and sometimes by the centaur Firenze, Muggle Studies used to be an elective but because of the fact a core class after the war and the last one is Study of Ancient Runes whose Professor is Bathsheba Babbling. In the Sixth and the seventh year with sufficient demand, you can also choose Advanced Arithmancy Studies, Alchemy, or Ancient Studies. In the seventh year, you also take Apparition whose Instructor is a Ministry personnel that can be taken by everyone in their seventh year but not used before their seventeenth birthday outside of school."
"What is Apparition?"
"Apparition is wizarding transportation. It is essentially the magical action of traveling by having the user focus on the desired location in their mind. After the user is properly focused, they then disappear from the current location and instantly reappear at the desired location. In short, an Apparition is a form of teleportation. It is by far the fastest way to get to the desired destination but is tricky to pull off correctly and disastrous if botched. Apparition is a popular method of travel in the wizarding world, though it is stated that plenty of adult witches and wizards do not bother with it. These witches and wizards prefer other means of transport. It is also impossible to Apparate or Disapparate inside or outside of Hogwarts."
"Do you have any Extra-curricular subjects?"
"Yes, there are Art, Ghoul Studies, Magical Theory, Muggle Art, Muggle Music, Music, Xylomancy."
"What about Extra-curricular activity?"
"Yes, to that too there are Hogwarts' orchestra, Art Club for Gryffindor, Astronomy Club, Charms Club, Dueling Club, Frog Choir with Conductor Professor Flitwick, Hogwarts Ancient Runes Club, Hogwarts Gobstone Club, Magical Creatures (club), Potions Club, Rat Race Club, Slugs and Bugs Club, Slug Club, Wizard Card Collectors' Club. So, we have many, many clubs you can even make one of your own of you would like."
"That's good do they aren't limited only in something." said a father and the other parents nodded
"There is also Counselling which is Hogwarts career advice from their Heads of House in their O.W.L. year, some weeks prior to the examinations, to help establish what subjects the students need to concentrate on to achieve the required O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. scores for their chosen occupations."
"Thank god I thought there was something to do with a shrink."
"In the fifth year, the students get career advice, which should help students choose their N.E.W.T. subjects. Before their examination (during the Easter break) the students receive a batch of leaflets, advertising different jobs available to Hogwarts students, and the N.E.W.T.s required for them. During the first week of the summer term, the students discuss their future careers with the Head of Houses during a careers appointment."
"What are both O.W.L and N.E.W.T?"
"O.W. L or Ordinary Wizarding Level is a standardized subject-specific test taken during Hogwarts students' fifth year, administrated by the Wizarding Examinations Authority. The score made by a student on a particular O.W.L. determines whether or not he or she will be allowed to continue taking that subject in subsequent school years, and whether they might be successful in obtaining a particular job. As well as referring to the test that students take in their fifth year, the term "O.W. L" also refers to the type of class, i.e. the level of difficulty of the class the student is taking. In addition, "achieving an O.W.L" is used to refer to a class in which the student has passed their O.W.L exam. Due to the serious and important nature of the tests, preparation for both O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s is very hard work. Students will generally begin preparing for their O.W.L.s in their fourth year, in order to take them at the end of their fifth. These examinations in sort determine what type of career students will be able to obtain once their education is complete. Successfully completing the O.W.L.s is a sign that the student is trustworthy enough to be a law-abiding citizen who can learn from their mistakes.
"N.E.W. T or Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test is also a subject-specific exam but it's taken by seventh-year witches and wizards at Hogwarts. They take this exam to help them pursue certain careers after their graduation, so passing these exams is critical. For instance, the Ministry of Magic only accepts Aurors applicants with at least five N.E.W.T.s with top grades of either 'Outstanding' or 'Exceeds Expectations'. At Hogwarts, pupils have to complete the Ordinary Wizarding Level exams before selecting the subjects they want to continue for the N.E.W.T. level, which is the highest merit that they can achieve. They pick the subjects at the start of their sixth year, providing they achieved the O.W.L. grades that the teachers want them to have, and providing there is sufficient demand in the case of specialized subjects (such as Alchemy). They study for their N.E.W.T.s in the sixth and seventh year, before sitting an exam for each subject at the end of the seventh and final year. The exams themselves are incredibly difficult as stated in the name " nastily exhausting. The studying involved in this exam is just as vigorous or even more so then the O.W.L. exams."
"That's kind of given," said Natalie Dursley
James Sirius chuckled and said, "Yes but you would be surprised how many people don't know that."
Every adult rolled their eyes and said:" So that doesn't change in your world either."
"Yes, but they also seem to forget for a while that It is vital, they achieve a high grade, as many professions will require them. Pupils do not have to sit their N.E.W.T.s if they don't want to, as not all careers in the wizarding world require N.E.W.T.s. A student must have previously achieved an O.W.L. in the subject in order to move on to N.E.W.T.-level classes. More specialized subjects are available with sufficient demand. Most Hogwarts Professors will accept the second higher grade on the student's O.W.L.s for those classes in order to allow them to advance to N.E.W.T.-level but there are teachers who don't accept with grades lower than the highest one."
"So does the Grading system work exactly?"
"Grading on routine homework works in the same line like that for Muggle students. Hogwarts students also have more difficult exams as they progress higher in the system. Through O.W.L. which the wizarding equivalent of Muggle O-levels and N.E.W.T.s which are much like A-levels for Muggle students are the most important. N.E.W.T. cannot be retaken."
"Dammit." mumbled the future students making the order people chuckle at that
"The Grades at Hogwarts I am going from the highest to lowest are O – Outstanding, E - Exceeds Expectations, A – Acceptable, P – Poor, D – Dreadful, T – Troll. This grading system is also used on W.O.M.B.A.T.s and it is used on N.E.W.T.s also, making this the universal exam grading system in wizarding Britain."
"Are they any other exams?"
"Yes, they are called End of year exams, and all students at Hogwarts are required to complete a set of examinations to get into the next year of schooling. There is one exam for each subject. In the fifth-year instead of the end of the year exams, students set their O.W.L while in their seventh year, they take their N.E.W.T. inside."
"Students are also allowed to bring a cat, an owl or a toad, but exceptions such as rats and Pygmy Puffs are made. Moreover, students do not have to pay tuition fees, because of the fact the British Ministry of Magic covers the cost of all students' magical education but you are going to have to buy the other stuff yourself."
"That's good," said Samuel Hill the reason, why they hadn't wanted their daughter to go, was that they didn't think they could afford it but at least they didn't have to worry about that
"Yes, there is also a foundation that helps families who can't afford it to buy their stuff it's called The Marauders foundation. Tryouts for House Quidditch teams happen at the very beginning of the school year. The Heads of the house have a list of applicants and pass them on to the team captain, so the captain can schedule tryouts at their leisure. First years are usually prohibited from joining a Quidditch team because of the fact they are usually inexperienced with brooms and are forbidden to own them in the first place. However, like in anything else, exceptions have been made on both counts though they have different reputations in the last three years Gryffindor has won every year. The Slytherin team is considered to have no qualms with cheating and unsportsmanlike conduct. That may be mostly because for years the Slytherin team employees' players of brute strength, rather than skill but that has also changed over the years not enough for them to win through." he smiled like he was proud of something
"So, I am guessing their winning streak has something to do with you?" asked Natalie looking at the younger man
He nodded and continued "Students at Hogwarts are required to wear a uniform and must wear it during all lessons, and while eating meals or studying in the Great Hall. Through students are allowed to wear their own clothes after lessons in their House dormitory and during the holidays. Most students are seen still wearing their uniforms in their house dormitory because they would need to change into their pajamas to sleep before they go to bed, they, it is troublesome to change into their own clothes, then change again into their pajamas. The Hogwarts uniform consists of a black robe and a black pointed hat. The robes bear no marks to distinguish between the houses but students themselves add the colors of their own house as a sign of pride like I said and they also wear their own socks and shoes. During the winter months, a grey jumper replaces the jumper vest for comfort, and a scarf bearing the two colors of their house and it's worn for warmth. A black pointed hat is provided but is only worn for special occasions such as the opening ceremony, special dinners, house cup ceremony."
"I think that's all you need to know now how about we visit Diagon Alley and buy all the stuff you need." everyone nodded excitedly
